Village football club could face Liverpool FC and Man City in cup competition

Mulbarton Wanderers will be playing in the FA Cup. Photo Jack Owen (Image: Archant)

A rural Norfolk football club could find itself facing the likes of Liverpool FC and Manchester City after qualifying for the FA Cup.

Mulbarton Wanderers will be making its debut in the prestigious competition this coming season, with its first game against Boston Town on August 10.

The club currently plays in Division One North of the Eastern Counties League, but could end up against some of the best teams in English football through the cup.

Mulbarton's vice chairman Daniel Gaskin said: "This felt like a pipe dream a few years ago, but our success on the pitch and hard work off the pitch has got us here.

Mulbarton Wanderers first team managers, from left, Danny Self and Ben Thompson. Photo: Jack Owen (Image: Archant)

"If we can get a win on Saturday it would be huge for the club, not just as an achievement, but also because of the prize money."

Mulbarton is one of 50 new entries to the competition who will all play an extra preliminary round on Saturday.

Twenty-three of those clubs will be making their Emirates FA Cup debut.

The teams which progress on from the initial stage will receive £2,250, while the losing clubs get £750.

With a total of 736 clubs entered into this season's cup, Mulbarton could technically face teams including Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.

But Mr Gaskin said: "Obviously that is not going to happen. It's impossible to tell, but it would be lovely to just win the next two games."

Should Mulbarton beat Boston Town, they will face either Leicester Nirvana or Oadby Town on August 24, with the winners receiving £2,890 and the losers taking £960.

The club's first team enters the cup on the back of an impressive decade of football. It was promoted to the Anglian Combination Division Six in 2009 and achieved back-to-back promotions to reach the Premier Division in 2015.

It finished second in 2018 and successfully applied to join the Eastern Counties Football League last season, where it came third in Division One.

Mr Gaskin said the club, which plays at Mulberry Park, Mulbarton, spent £50,000 last year on creating a new stand and purchasing tractors to maintain the pitches.

He said the work was needed to ensure it remained in the league and was accepted into the cup.

Norwich CBS, which plays at the Football Development Centre at Bowthorpe, is another FA Cup debutant and is up against Bugbrooke St Michaels.